Texas A&M in the funnies and it's not even an Aggie joke

I expect to receive an e-mail from Dr. Murano (not a personal one but a university-wide one) asking everyone to stop pointing out today's Baldo to her or asking her about it. Baldo does not run in the Eagle but it does appear on the Houston Chronicle website. Tomorrow, the Eagle might mention Dr. Murano's appearance in the funnies. Then maybe not because the Eagle might have to explain its tiny comics section (tiny both in terms of selection and print size). I bet the comments will be turned off for that article online.

For those who do not follow Baldo, Gracie, the little girl writing, has been working on her essay for Hispanic Heritage month since Monday. Baldo is a good comic strip and would make a great replacement for any of the zombie strips*.

Speaking of zombie strips, it looks like Terry Bryson is working on her escape from Toby's stupid. Don't bother using the door, Terry; go out the window, that way you will avoid walking behind Toby and catching some of her stupid. As a security expert, Terry has already mentally scoped out the room and knows which objects she can grab quickly and use to defend herself.

I'm no longer certain about background continuity anymore. When Terry and Toby first entered this room the window was directly behind them. Now it appears the window has moved but it is consistent with yesterday. What is that in the lower left hand corner of the second panel? That better not be Toby's monitor. Gah! Now I have a headache!

The sad thing is that despite Joe Giella's age and funky scenery shifting he still draws way better than I do.

*Zombie strip - a comic strip that continues to run in the papers despite the death of its creator.

The UTI has passed or at least no longer causing me discomfort.

The whale in the parking lot

A chalk outline of a whale drawn on the parking lot behind the building where I work. Somebody from physical plant tried to erase it but they stopped when told that the drawing is for a class. I think it is a blue whale. The whale drawing appears every spring semester. The rain will wash it away but it not only gives the students taking the class a sense of scale of a whale but others who walk in that parking lot also learn something.

Agriculture is Life!

The Texas A&M shout out continues.

Karen Moy actually receives money for writing this? I suppose intentionally writing boring stories is a special talent.

The place where I work will release to the public its new identity. I've already seen the new logos and usage guidelines. Seems to me a waste of money but since we hardly make things in the U.S., a large number of people need something to do and I guess developing a brand identity is better than wanton violence. My problem is that the higher ups expect everyone to take this whole thing so seriously. I really can't but I might go to one of the Brand Master training sessions so I can add "Brand Master" to my credentials and maybe learn to lift objects with my mind.

Here are the results of all the effort:

I think, Agriculture is Life, Motherf*ck*r!, would make a better slogan. The colors are Aggie Maroon and Pantone Cool Gray 10. I think the arc is unnecessary.

Comic shout out!

Frazz is wearing a Texas A&M t-shirt. Lyle Lovett is a former student.
Frazz belongs in more papers, it does not stink.

Silver Taps

I was out and about way past my bedtime last night. I attended the first Silver Taps ceremony of the new school year. I knew one of the students who was being honored.

In the silence, I thought about James, his family and the attitudes toward Texas A&M traditions that I sometimes encounter at church.

I find some of the attitudes toward the traditions rather frustrating. Many of the people who attend my church are affiliated with the university. We work on making sure that we do not assume that newcomers are also affiliated with the university. But there seems to be a bit of a disdain for the traditions of Texas A&M and the somewhat conservative views of the student body that leads some people to see the UU church as a refuge from all that. Others think that change never happens because of the entrenched traditions. Below the surface, where several people I've encountered at church refuse to look, the traditions evolve and new traditions form to replace out-dated traditions. This evolution may be a bit slow for some people's taste but it happens. Dr. Gates made some huge strides in diversifying the faculty, staff and student body while maintaining the goodwill of all the parties and I hope the replacement president can continue that tradition.

If those who have such disdain for Texas A&M traditions and the attitudes of its students would attend one Silver Taps ceremony perhaps they could learn to appreciate the spiritual value and the way that tradition can serve as a common experience that binds the student body and unites former students. I saw at least 1,000 students at this Silver Taps ceremony. I doubt very few of them knew the deceased personally and may not have shared much in common with the deceased students but they attended because these were Aggies and that was all that mattered. They stood silently in the darkness, listened to the footfalls of the cadets, listened to the 21 gun salute and the playing of taps and then dispersed in silence.

The strange thing about my church is despite the number of people affiliated with the university very few actually received degrees from Texas A&M. Only two or three members would stand up in the sanctuary and proudly proclaim that they are Aggies. In my nearly 10 years with this church I never heard anyone proclaim that they received their Aggie ring (this is a big deal at Texas A&M) or got their senior boots (I've never seen a member of the Corps of Cadets attend our services) during Joys and Sorrows or mention that their children got accepted into A&M and will attend. My church seems to value higher education as long as it is pursued somewhere else.

I don't think being an Aggie is incompatible with being a religious liberal. In my opinion, I think our church would grow and have more student involvement if we learned to appreciate the positive aspects of Texas A&M tradition and appreciate the progress that is being made toward embracing diversity.